The Audacity of Demons

by Trina M. Lee

  “Yeah, we are definitely going to have some fun.” Ghost gave a slow nod as he dragged his gaze to mine, cigarette tucked between his lips. “It’s good to see you again. Really damn good.”

  So I wasn’t the only one who remembered that night fondly. Good thing vamps weren’t the blushing type. I’d have been as red as my hair.

  Before I could muster something witty and flirtatious, footsteps pounded up the stairs. Definitely a human. They’d no doubt be the first to die. So loud and careless.

  The moment broken, Ghost and I turned to find the platinum blonde woman ascending. She rounded the corners of the square layout, and her big blue eyes lit up when she saw us. The deep red stone that hung from a silver chain around her neck made me think witch. They carried a lot of gems and trinkets.

  Blonde girl slowed her pace, knowing better than to rush toward vampires. She extended a hand as she stepped onto the balcony, the way one might hold their hand for a dog to sniff.

  I bit back a grin.

  “We didn’t get a chance to really meet before. I’m Dalyn.” Proving that she wasn’t an idiot, she stopped in the doorway to the balcony. Where she could make a run for it if she had to.

  She was right to be wary. Nobody in this house could be trusted. Otherwise, we wouldn’t be here, would we?

  In a show of good nature, I stepped forward to shake her hand. “Blaze. Nice to meet you. I think. This is Ghost.”

  Ghost didn’t take her hand. He hung back near the railing puffing smoke between his lips, eyeing her with intense scrutiny. “What did they grab you for, creampuff? You look way too pure to be here.”

  Despite the faint blush that colored her cheeks, Dalyn’s bubble gum pink lips curved into an innocent smile. “I may or may not have cursed my ex-fiancé after I caught him in bed with my best friend. I may or may not have also cursed said best friend. Ex-best friend rather.”

  A witch. As expected. Most would never have guessed her to be capable of working dark magic. Nobody ever suspected the bubbly types hid sinister intentions. A clever disguise.

  “What kind of curse?” I asked, curious about any human dangerous enough to land her in The Circle of the Veil’s Institute for Wayward Monsters. Or whatever they actually called this place.

  “The kind that unfortunately made his intestines explode in the middle of a board meeting. The Circle had a guy inside the building. It was reported immediately.” Dalyn clasped her hands in front of her until her knuckles turned white. “They sent someone to wipe the memories of the witnesses and made me break the curse on my friend before it could be triggered. They rearranged the whole story so everyone thinks my ex died in a car crash.”

  Now that I had not expected. I nodded in mild surprise. “Can’t say I’d have done it differently myself.”

  “Nice vengeance kill,” Ghost remarked, stubbing out his cigarette before flicking the butt off the balcony. With a parting glance for me, he ambled toward the doorway. Dalyn stepped back inside to let him pass. “Have a good day, ladies. Better rest up. I don’t imagine they plan to go easy on any of us.”

  I watched him saunter to the stairs and head up to the third floor. I wondered who else shared that floor.

  “Well, I’m just over there.” Dalyn pointed to one of the two bedrooms closest to the stairs from the main floor. “Feel free to pop by sometime. I have a feeling it might get kind of lonely here.”

  Despite being a willful murderer, she was friendly. Young as well, less than thirty I’d wager. She hadn’t had a century of loneliness and pain to numb her out and leave her mistrustful of everyone that breathed in her direction.

  Pointing toward the third-floor stairs I said, “I’m up there. And thanks. I’ll keep that in mind. Although I wouldn’t go inviting too many vampires into your room if I were you.”

  My warning was delivered with a laugh, but I wasn’t joking. Not really. I didn’t have or give a lot of advice, but Trust no one summed it up. I knew Ghost was as deadly a screw as he was a killer, and I didn’t know anything about the other vampire here.

  “Yeah, I don’t know if death is the price I want to pay to find out if it’s true what they say about vampires in bed.” She gazed after Ghost who’d disappeared from sight. “But damn, he is hot.”

  “Oh, it’s true of all vampires,” I promised, stepping inside off the balcony. “They’ll ruin you for human lovers. Especially the incubus and succubus types.”

  Dalyn pursed her lips in feigned contemplation. “Now you’re just feeding my curiosity.”

  I headed toward the stairs, ready to have some time alone with my thoughts. My predicament left me a lot to process before whatever Nova planned for us next. “I’ll see you tonight. It was nice to meet you, Dalyn. Lock your door. Maybe find a weapon. Keep it handy. Just in case.”

  “Will do.” With a wave she drifted toward her room as I ascended to mine.

  When I reached the third floor, I paused to peer down between the railings for a glimpse of the main floor below. How quickly our reality could change. Trailing my fingertips along the bannister, I followed it around to my room. I had no idea which room Ghost had vanished into.

  I let myself into my gilded prison cell and engaged all three deadbolts and the heavy-duty chain lock. Not that any of those would keep anyone in this house out if they wanted in bad enough, and demons could bypass doors entirely. Still it was better than nothing.

  With the heavy blackout curtains closed against the coming sunrise, I sat on the edge of the bed and wondered when I’d gone wrong to end up here. I suspected it had been long before tonight.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  True to his word, as soon as the sun went down Nova allowed me to grab my things from my apartment. “Ready to be put to the test? Don’t try to run. I can find you anywhere.” He promptly disappeared, leaving only the sound of flapping wings in his wake. An enviable trick no doubt.

  “Alrighty then. Good talk.” My muttered words were spoken to the empty hallway outside my room. I most definitely considered possible methods of escape.

  Shortly after, there’d been a knock on my door. The shifter who’d driven me to the house stood ready to accompany me to grab my stuff. He claimed Nova instructed him to let me have fifteen minutes inside my apartment to gather my things.

  On the ride over he introduced himself as Sage. I tried to find out what he really did for The Circle of the Veil, but he’d remained tight lipped, only saying he was “something of a fixer.” Once we arrived he waited in the front entryway, the only doorway.

  In my bedroom I hurriedly shoved clothing from my dresser and closet into two duffel bags. Glancing back toward the front hall, I briefly flirted with the idea of jumping the guy. He seemed nice enough, but I could overpower a lone werewolf. It sure beat the alternative of jumping from the fifth floor; I wouldn’t get very far with broken legs. Vampires healed fast but not that fast.

  In the bathroom I did a quick sweep of my toiletries and personal items. A sinking swell of disappointment left a bitter taste in my mouth. If I jumped the wolf and escaped but Nova found me anyway, I was dead.

  Dead was not an option. I hadn’t survived being married off to the highest bidder and ultimately won in a poker game by a cruel vampire just to die now because I was too fucking stubborn.

  No, I had to stick this out. For now. It was too early to make a move.

  “Almost done?” the wolf asked, his voice loud in the quiet hall.

  “Yeah, just looking for my phone charger.” The lie spilled out easily enough.

  Sliding my hand beneath the mattress on the bed, I fished around until I found the six-inch blade I kept there. Just in case. In my bag it went, safely sheathed in leather.

  A quick perusal confirmed that everything of relative importance had been packed. Nothing about this place held any sentimental value. My definition of home had been destroyed the night I’d been forced into a long black car that took me to meet my soon-to-be husband. Whether I’d liked that idea or not.

>   The memory flashed behind my eyes, but I suppressed it. Squeezing the bridge of my nose, I sucked in a deep breath. It had taken ages to stop thinking about that night, and I wasn’t starting again now.

  Once I’d recovered from my brief slip in composure, I returned to the front hall with both bags. As a human bride, I’d been horrified that my entire life fit into a single trunk. Now I preferred that simplicity. Everything was easier without attachments.

  “Let’s go.” I didn’t bother with a glance back at the apartment. Another of many, they all tended to blur together over the years.

  After an uneventful ride back to the house, I took a long, hot shower and changed into tight black yoga pants and a tank top with a pair of running shoes. The stretchy workout gear moved freely with my body. I didn’t know what to expect from Nova’s training, but I wasn’t fool enough to think it would be easy.

  I went light on the makeup, using just enough to bring some color to my cheeks. The bright red hair and ghostly pallor tended to make me look more zombie than vampire.

  As I tied a fishtail braid into my long locks, a noise from beyond the window drew me. In the patio light Rayne was already in the pool, swimming hard from one end to the other with strong strokes. Naked again. He knew there were people here this time.

  Still, if he wanted to be seen that badly, I’d take another peek. Drawing the blinds open all the way, I allowed myself a glimpse of the inked werewolf’s taut, naked behind. Before Rayne could catch me, I turned away.

  I’d love to sink my teeth into him. Nova had said we shouldn’t get attached, my own personal motto, so that was fine with me, but he didn’t specifically say we couldn’t have some fun together.

  Nova expected us downstairs soon. On my way down I caught up with the quiet but cute blond werewolf. He descended the stairs ahead of me, a worn book tucked into his back pocket. As soon as he realized I was behind him, he slowed his pace until I caught up, wary of having me at his back. Smart wolf.

  “Hey, I’m Blaze.” I tried for neutral friendly. Just because I trusted nobody in this place didn’t mean we couldn’t play nice. “How’s it going?” Small talk came robotically, the autopilot tone we all used with cashiers and bank tellers. Basic emotionless interactions. I hated it.

  He hated it more. “Corr. Let’s not do that ‘fake nice and play human’ shit.” He wrinkled his nose and shook his head of ashy hair. Whatever Corr’s story, it had left him like a beaten, abandoned dog. Wary but ready to be vicious, anything to protect what was left of him. “Let’s just be straight up. We can’t trust each other. But we can’t trust them either.”

  Them. The Circle of the Veil. Corr’s tension was palpable. He didn’t trust what lay ahead and fully expected the worst. Who had scarred him so badly?

  The bittersweet scent of his simmering trepidation brought my gaze to the pulse throbbing along the side of his neck. As we descended the last few steps, he caught me licking my lips like a fiend. Fear could set off a predator like a bullet from a gun: instant and explosive. Aware of that Corr edged away from me the moment we reached the main floor.

  A clatter from the kitchen drew me to pop my head inside. Dalyn and a few others were grabbing something to eat. Corr swept by me, headed for the fridge. Repulsed by the scent of food, I wandered the other way, toward the living room.

  Before I could get very far down the hallway, Nova appeared six feet in front of me. Much to my horror I shrieked like a little girl in a Halloween haunted house.

  Except this monster was real.

  “Can’t you walk in the front door like everybody else?” I recovered quickly, but that didn’t help me feel any less embarrassed or pissed off because of said embarrassment. “Jumping out at unsuspecting people is not fucking cool. You could get punched that way.”

  Which was no less than the bastard deserved. He stood there smirking, pleased with himself for scaring the daylights out of me. Anybody would jump if a demon materialized out of nowhere right in front of them.

  “That’s why I stayed out of reach.” Nova’s smirk became a fang-revealing grin.

  With the horns, wings, and tail, along with the double fangs and red eyes, he resembled both angel and demon. Beautiful, like he’d been made with great care, yet sinister, everything once good about him now evil. Despite being wrapped in a lovely package, his fall could never be forgotten.

  Holding his arms out to either side, Nova stepped forward, sweeping me back the way I’d come. “I’m gathering everyone to meet in the basement now. Consider this orientation.”

  Five minutes later we all stood on the lowest floor of the house. Also the coldest, no concern for me but the humans shivered. The layout branched off in separate wings. Nova pointed in one direction down a long hall, explaining that magic training and spell casting, both offense and defense, took place down that wing. He led us the opposite way to where the physical combat and weapons training took place.

  Hard stone tile lined the hall floor while a few closed doors broke up the plain gray walls. The passage opened into a large space decked out like a gym: sturdy slip-proof floors, various workout machines, weightlifting equipment, and racks of weapons. With plenty of room to spar, the entire setup was impressive.

  Dalyn had come dressed to hit the gym. A few others wore casual workout wear as well. The rest kept to their regular street clothes.

  “Prepare to be pushed to your limits.” Nova addressed our group with wings flared and hands clasped behind his back. Over dark pants he wore a long, sleeveless tunic, a hood hanging down his back. “This is where you’ll learn to overcome your weaknesses and enhance your strengths. You’re not the first to come through here. You won’t be the last. You’re all rogues and rebels who were spared for this purpose. Don’t make me regret that.” He walked back and forth in front of us as he spoke. “Now let’s get started.”

  His gaze flicked over the nine of us, including Rayne who’d come in while Nova was talking. The werewolf stood off to one side, pushing a hand through his damp hair.

  Nova jabbed a finger in the air at Dalyn. “Let’s start with you. State your name for everyone present. First names only. We don’t do last names here.”

  The third vampire introduced himself as Adam. The angry she-wolf with the side shave was Tavi. The fourth wolf was a forty-something guy named Vic. The last human, an older man with salt-and-pepper hair, said his name was Ira.

  After our introductions Nova called us forward individually, starting with me. “Ladies first.” He gave me a dramatic half bow with a wicked gleam in his eyes.

  Despite there being two other women present.

  Fantastic. Uneasy with everyone watching, I came toward him, wary as hell. “Is this some kind of skill testing exercise?”

  Holding out a hand, a shard of ice formed in Nova’s palm. “I need to know what you’re capable of.” With that he whipped the sharp chunk of ice at me. Like a throwing knife the icy blade whirled end over end, slicing through the air with my face as its target.

  Adrenaline fueled me as instinct took over.

  Not trusting myself to smack it out of the air, I instead dodged the shard completely by whirling away in a circle that brought me closer to Nova rather than further away. With both hands extended I used a push of power to hit him at close range.

  Thrown off balance, he spread those big black wings to stay upright.

  I knew I wasn’t the most powerful vampire around. Not by a long shot. But I was no slouch either. I’d learned how to use what I had.

  When Nova shot a burst of fire from his fingertips, I threw myself to one side and flipped, landing a perfect backward handspring. Once upright again I retaliated with a psi ball that glowed a deep red, the same color as my aura.

  But Nova wasn’t there anymore.

  My attack hit the wall and the ball burst, causing the atmosphere to swell with the scattered energy. Turning too late, I found the demon already behind me. Before I could react or defend, he hit me, an actual fist to the face.
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  I went down hard, tasting blood before my ass hit the ground. Pain shot through my cheek and jaw. Flinging out a hand to catch myself, I rolled and leaped back to my feet.

  With a palm raised, Nova held a psi assault ready, but he didn’t use it yet. Instead he beckoned for me to come closer and hit him with another one. “Let’s see what you’ve got, red.” Mischief sparked behind Nova’s crimson eyes. With a bent finger he taunted, “Give it to me good.” Delivered in that smooth incubus tone, those words were a weapon of their own. They touched me everywhere and nowhere, and I did want to hurt him for that.

  Along with that stupid nickname he kept tossing at me.

  Between clenched teeth I muttered obscenities beneath my breath. Nova grinned. Having everyone watch made the back of my neck hot. Why did I have to be first? Anything I could dredge up, Nova could withstand with little to no damage. He was a demon. It took a lot to hurt an immortal with elemental magic.

  With a frustrated snarl, I launched myself at the smirking demon. I threw my left fist first and, as anticipated, he caught it. Since my right was stronger, I swung hard. Expecting him to block that one as well, I was surprised when it landed.

  Nova’s head snapped to the side, but he raised a hand to invite more. “Show me how much power you have,” he commanded. “Everything. Give me a taste of you.” At his double entendre that wicked spark lit up those inhuman orbs. Traces of silver flecks broke up the red, noticeable only from this close.

  But I was bleeding now. It coated my tongue from a cut inside my cheek. Even that little blood amped my power. A lot of blood, a lot of power. With the price of a fast burnout. Putting my abilities on display felt wrong. I didn’t trust any of them and I didn’t trust myself. My magic was too wild.

  “No,” I blurted. Hands raised, fists clenched, I maintained a defensive stance, refusing to go at him again. Not until I knew what kind of game he played here.